J
SULTAN ALI

1920 - 1990

Artist Profile

BEGINNINGS

He was born in Bombay, Maharashtra. He was born of
Ismaili Khoja parents, originally from Gujarat. 1935
He came to madras at the age of fifteen, and was groomed
for the confectionery business which his father had
embarked upon. 1954 Member of Progressive Painters`
Association, Madras. 1963 Member of the Indian Delegation
to the First All- Asia Art Exhb. and Conference, Nepal.
1967 Member of Artists Handicrafts Association, Madras.
1968 The Foreign Office of the Federal Republic of Germany
sent him on a sight seeing tour of West Germany. 1969
He joined K.C.S. Paniker at the Cholamandal Artists`
Village, Madras. 1970-77 Vice Presedent, Artists Handicrafts
Association, Madras. 1977-80 President, Artists Handicrafts
Association, Madras. Travelled in England, sponsored
by the British Council, London. Also visited Paris and
other centres to see important Museums and Galleries.
1970-90 He was a freelance painter.

His pictorial language is basically symbolic, which
was markedly influenced by his direct experience of
tribal life and culture. No wonder his art had so much
spontaneity and purity in it. Creatures and Forces of
Nature assume anthromorphic forms, symbol of powers,
both earthly and magical. The complexity of meaning
is also reflected in the corresponding complexity of
technique. He developed a very elaborate way of representing
space: figures are superimposed on figures, colours
merge into each other, forming misty and defused effect,
which could be read as a mass of detail.